En l'air

About the Exhibition

“Repose” is a study of the life of a dancer. For much of the artist’s life, dance was an integral part of their upbringing. Through this oeuvre, Taylor examines the beauty of ballet through a new lens, after years of rest, resulting in the exhibition’s apt title.

The show highlights the Renaissance-like emotions that dancers can convey, through the intense exertion of their bodies, juxtaposed with the softness and grace they exude. This duality, inherent to ballet as a practice, is mirrored in the artist’s use of Old Master techniques, such as chiaroscuro, to accentuate the duality of light and dark that must coexist to reveal clarity. Taylor also employs other Old Master painting techniques, such as underpainting and intentional composition, to add depth and emotion to modern subjects.

About the Artist

Holly Taylor is an actress, dancer, and artist from New Jersey, currently living in London. Having worked on Broadway, TV, and film since the age of 11, Taylor’s curiosity about other forms of self-expression eventually led her to the fine arts after graduating with a BFA in Graphic Design and Advertising from Kean University. In 2023, she taught herself to paint and held her first solo exhibition at Urbana Gallery in New York. Taylor returns to the New York art scene this year for her debut exhibition at Salon 21.